Direction: Uniform

While everyone's busy with next winter's projections, I live in the present. And in the present, it seems like the big woolly sweater and the little flimsy skirt are best friends:

Zara

Band of Outsiders at Asos.com

Zara sale

Manoush

I love this array of looks - perfect for concealing the winter muffin top (everyone has one, don't tell me otherwise), perfect for showing off some leg (with little booties) and feminine without being flashy. Besides, this uniform will lead you straight into the ZARA SALE wormhole... And it's not such a bad place to be right now.  

Casual Friday

As promised here, I'm determined to wear more pants. It's not like I have something against them - but, being the lazy person that I am, pants (or other separates) require a considerable amount of coordination, and I don't like to think too much about it. Dresses are simple. Pants are for those who don't have commitment-phobia. I wore this look on the weekend, however, given it was a cold day and I love this shirt:

Jeans - H&M

Shirt - Men's from Analog

Shoes - Via Spiga

Yup, tribal pattern is still my thing. But more than the pants that led to it, I enjoyed wearing a completely buttoned shirt (I have a penchant for total buttoning, a penchant not easily achieved when you got breasts) and those atypical loafer-type shoes I just got on sale. The cousin of my favorite ballet flats, this shoe carries a foreign, yet exciting, androgynous spirit. Look where pants got me!

Lilly vs. Emma - the Cute-Off

Let's face it – Brits are just too adorable. It's as if the UK celebrities emerge into the spotlight knowing how to be sexy and subtle at the same time, and you can't deny the coolness factor - it comes with the accent, which I normally can't resist. So, I was thrilled to find two of Britain's most cupcake-like ladies, the recently un-retired Lilly Allen and the newly grown-up Emma Watson, competing for our attention this month with two new magazine covers. Who did it better (and cuter)?

Watson, whose new epic film Noah is coming to the theaters next month, is starring on the cover of Wonderland, a new British fashion magazine. Two versions of the it – jokingly named “Afro Prada Bruiser" and “Elf Alien Queen” on her Twitter account – are accompanied by a whole bunch of pages we're supposed to believe she guest-edited. Her favorite people are Pharrell, Lena Dunham, Lorde and her Perks of Being a Wallflower co-star Ezra Miller to name a few, demonstrating a very varied (albeit a tad mainstream, in a hipster sort of way) taste in popular culture.

On the other corner of the pond, the ever-so-bitter-sweet songstress Lilly Allen got herself a cover as well, with Elle Britain. The beautiful photo shoot (just how pretty are the logo letters, in tune with Allen's Miu Miu dress?) is very much in the spirit of her upcoming single "Air Balloon" and proves Lilly is back big time, and her interview is supposedly peppered with comments about feminism, media brainwashing and motherhood. Here's a teaser: "Of course I’d rather look like Kate Moss than look like myself,” she admits. “I wish I didn’t feel like that, and I think the reason we feel like that is because of the imagery we’re fed all the time. Women are still expected, in some weird way, to kind of… sit there and look pretty. And not talk.” I wouldn't guess from this video:

Emma's editorial debut hits the stands on Feb. 7, while Lilly's issue is expected in early March. So who do you prefer? The wise, tongue-in-cheek Allen or the bubbly, fun-lovin' Watson? Or should we just have a tea party with both of them? What a great idea! 

Easy Living

January turned out to be surprisingly busy. I do, however, find the time to pick up random finds in second-hands across the universe. This was taken on the way to somewhere, driven by the candy-stripe background matching my pumps and dress. Oh, and have I mentioned winter never came?

Dress - American Apparel

Jacket - same as here (so useful!)

Leggings - I Heart Ronson

Shoes - Zara

I can't wait for real summer to wear this dress to the beach, with my new pole-dancing-improved body (there, I said it...). In the meantime, it's paired with my best friends in the whole world, leggings (if someone would ask me what to pack for a long journey, this would be my only answer), made my this cute diffusion line for JC Penney, and a very useful jacket I picked from a free file somewhere. Life is full of surprises. 

14 Ways to Start 2014 Right

Three years ago, working for a magazine I now work for again, I was assigned to write a lightweight article about "starting the year". I wrote it, but my editor back then wasn't feeling it – it's too young, too silly, she said. Did you forget we aim for an all-inclusive demographic? So it ended up on my blog, and you loved it. Today I woke up inspired and felt like recreating that list. I love beginnings way more than ends (hardly original, I know ) and I often find myself dreaming, reflecting, plotting and planning, all in January. So – bear with me and let's begin 2014.

1. Upgrade your sports wardrobe: I bought purple leopard-print Nike running shoes this year and never looked back.

2. Make this. It's a yummy, easy, healthy dream of a dish.

3. Make friends with pants – yesterday when a pole in my closet collapsed from dresses overweight, I realized I have a problem.

4. Make friends with TV comedies – I recently started watching Subrgatory (so fashionably late) and now you can find me laughing in bed at 2 a.m. Other truly funny comedies: New Girl, Parks and Recreation and Party Down (please watch it).

5. Find a new esoteric crush – I got my eyes on Alex Ebert. Who? Have you watched the Golden Globes?

6. Stay in bed all day and finally browse through your new cookbooks, magazines and fan mail (I'm going to be cuddling with this one).

7. Discover a Portuguese or Cape Verde singer – for some reason, it's my favorite language of all times. Mayra Andrade, Mariza, Lhasa, just take a pick - and prepare to fall in love.

8. Watch those Oscar-nominated movies! I especially enjoyed the humble Nebraska but no way it's going to win.

My FAVORITES - you shall be mine

9. Treat yourself to a piece of Peter Pilotto for Target (bribe a friend if you're outside the US) - it's just so damn pretty.

10. Decide RIGHT NOW what festival you want to go to this year and perhaps buy the ticket. This is the last year I miss Coachella and Sundance, but it's not too late for this magic.

11. Learn how to ice skate. My own personal resolution and dream. Check this place out – they offer lessons for challenged adults such as us. Besides, have a Winter Olympics party!

12. Go have brunch at a Tel Avivian hotel – you can't afford staying there but you sure can pretend.

14. Try the blue eyeliner - I know you've been wanting to. And Scarlett's retro hairstyle. 

14. Count how many countries you've been to so far – and set a new bar in 2014 (stupidly staring at Google Maps, inspired by this video of a Russian dude I know, I counted 17). Get out there. Go to Greece, it's about time. Just go. 

The Swans

Some fashion-loving ladies out there call themselves "curators" - they "curate" clothes. Sometimes I think I accidentally curate dresses with animal prints on them. Not leopard prints, but little tigers, horses and donkeys. Adding to the collection - swans!

Dress - Silence and Noise

Sweater and Jacket -H&M

I love this flattering dress paired with a Christmas-y sweater. I'm also partial to modular, layered looks, which fit perfectly into the fickle climate. And next time - different boots, I swear. 

Happy accidents

Happy 2014 everyone. I have a vague feeling this year is going to be good - or at least intense and interesting. I will continue mixing new and old, crazy and appropriate, and I got a couple of surprises up my sleeve for the blog's future. Stay tuned!!  And in the meantime: I surprised myself by accidentally wearing something that might have been Isabel Marant for H&M. None of which I bought when the collection was still available.

Dress - H&M

Shoes - Zara

Coat - JC Penney

A silky dress with a messy print? Check. Boots with fringe? Check. The coat may not be oh-so-Parisian dark blue, but the boxy cut is quite accurate. It's not that I didn't like Isabel's collaboration, but the overall hysteria around it put me off a bit. And here I am, prancing around SF's beautiful Duboce Park in a cheaper tribute - my old favorite boots and my new favorite dress. Life is strange indeed